For what I remember,my dad had a 1990 420SEL (which is very popular in HongKong) that got 16000mls when we bought it.The car was almost perfect in every aspect.Although we got it serviced every 5000mls,the transmission seemed not very suitable for city driving that it lost its silky smooth shift after addition use of 30000mls.We tried to get it overhauled but the dealer/workshop told us it didn't worth cause that problem was very likely to come back since it was not desiged for city stop-and-go driving.Besides,the car didn't bring us any other major problem.If you want that smooth and powerful V8,I think you should take care of the transmission carefully.For more durable and long-term keeping,I would prefer a 300SEL since less power,the transmission would wear out more slower for a more smooth shift(We owned a 1989 300SE at the same time and it was for long trip use-done many many mls,200,000mls?? between HK and China and still stood strong!!).One more thing,there was a interior rattle noise from the plastic? panels at the back of the rear seat.(they seemed too tightened and tended to rub each other.Hope this helps.
from Davis Lo
1994 S320L